Beet-harvester.



0, 0. I. NILSSONI BEET HARVESTER.

APPLICATION FlLED JUNE 22,1914.

Patented A r. 6, 1911s.

3 SHBETSSHEET 2.

may

C. 0. I. NILSSON.

BEET HARVESTER. 1

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 22, I9I4.

3 SHEETSSHEBT 3.

Patented Apr. 6, 1915 view. Fig. 3 is a various ways so UISIITED s"CHARLES 0. I. NILSSON, OF BRO GKTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

BEET-HARVESTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 6, 1915.

Application filed June 22, 1914. Serial No. 846,668.

T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES 0.1. Nnisson, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Brockton, in the county of Plymouth and State ofMassachusetts, have invented cer- Another and more snecific object is toprovide a beet harvester which comprises a" wheel supported framecarrying means to dig and'elevate the beet to a point where the topsaresevered therefrom; also means for topping the beets.

Another object of my invention is to provide elevating means that areadjustable in as to be suited for operation in connection with beets ofdifferent sizes.

Another object is to provide novel gearing means for operating theelevating means that are adjustable so as not to be interfered with whenthe elevating means are adjusted and the proper elevating of the beetsat the proper time is insured.

Another object of importance is to provide a beet harvester of thecharacter described that is of exceedingly simple construction and islight, strong and. durable, may be cheaply manufactured and isinexpensive to maintain in working condition.

The above and additional objects are accomplished by such .means as areillustrated in the accompanying drawings, described in the followingspecification and then more particularly pointed out as claimed.

With reference to the drawings, wherein I have illustrated the preferredembodiment of my invention as it is reduced to, practice, and throughoutthe several views of which similar reference numerals, designatecorresponding parts:

-Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view partly in elevation of myimproved. beet harvester, showing the same in assembled and operativeposition. Fig. 2 is a top plan detail sectional view of the gearing tooperate the elevating means. Fig. 4c is a fragmentary detail sectionalview of the adjusting. gearing at the upper ends of the elevator bars.Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken on' the plane of line 5-5 ofFig. 1, illustrating the means for operating the topping knife andshowing parts of theelevatingmechanism. Fig. 6 is a transverse sectionalview taken at the forward end of the harvester, showing the means forloosening the soil about the beets so that they may be readily pulledfrom the rows by the tops. Referring to the drawings by charactersentirety the vehicle'body or frame having mounted ad acent its ends,front and rear axles 2 and 3 respectively that. have wheels 4: on theirends. Suitable draft gear desig- I nated 5 as an entirety is operativelyconnected with the platform or frame 1. A drivers seat 5 of the usualtype is mounted on the frame 1. p

The frame 1 consists of two parts, a rear part A and forward part B. Thepart B carries all of the mechanism except the receptacle to contain thetopped beets so that the device may be turned at the end of a row aswill be later more fully described. A'n angular bearing C is securedadjacent the forward edge of the rear part A and pivoted by means of abolt D to the rear part of the frame .B as clearly shown in Fig. 1 in vthe drawings. A block E spaces the bearing C from the frame part B sothat free turning of the part B relative to the frame part A isprovided.

Mounted on the frame 1 and .extending upwardly and rearwardly therefromare spaced and parallel elevator bars 6 and 7 that are supportedintermediate and apdles 10 fixed on their outer ends. The lower ends ofthe rods 8 are grooved circumferentially, as at 11, and positionedwithin angularly disposed sockets 12, that are slidably supported on theframe 1 by means of angle guides 12 that are secured by suitablefastening means to the frame and engage the upper faces of the flanges12 that act as bases for the sockets. A holding screw or bolt 13 isinserted through the intermediate portion of each socket and at itsinner end engages within the groove 11 in the rods 8. It will be readilyseen that the bars 6' and 7 of reference the numeral 1 designates as anmay be adjusted in an approximately ver-I tical plane so that the lowerends thereof are spaced in inoperative relation to the ground.

. The bars .6 and 7 are also supported at points adjacent to the rods 8but slightly spaced and arranged rearwardly therefromon a horizontaladjusting rod 14} This rod .14 is adjustable in a pivoted link bracket15 that is pivotally secured to an upstand ing support 15v carried bythe frame 1. A

receptacle 16 is .mounted on the body to catch the beets thatare'topped. A handle 17 is fixed on one end of the adjusting rod "curvedupwardly and outwardly, as at 18,

. gripped .at the topjand pulled' from the- 14: topermitadjustment ofthebars 6 and7 laterally onto and, from each other. It will be readilyseen'that' the rod 14 acts as a pivot and that in operatinglth'eadjusting rods 8 the forward endsof-the bars 6 and 7 will be liftedupwardly.

The forward ends of the. bars and 7 are so a' sjto slide over thesurface of the ground; Slightly" curved and elongated fingers '19 arearranged at the extreme forward end of the bars 6 an'd.7 and extendoutwardly in a slightly convergent plane and aredesigned .tofsli'de overthe ground on opposite sides of a rowof beets so as to clear the beets;that are to be gathered and elevated to theltoppingfknives, of "trash'and other foreign matter. As almeans for loosening the beets in therowsso that they may be readily ground I provide digging fingers 20'thatare. curved inwardly toward one another at I theirlower ends, as at 21,and secured upon the inner faces of'the bars6 and. 7 adjacent tothelower ends of .said bars. Fingers 20 are slidable in suitableibrackets22secured upon the inner faces of the bars 6 and 7 and areadjustable soas to dig into the ground tend the chains 29 in close proximity to oneelevating mechanism comprises 51 plurality of sprockets 27 that arej'ournaled for rotation in transverse recesses 28 formed ,in .the bars 6and 7. The sprockets that are arranged at the ends and centralfportio'nsof the bars 6 and ,7 have mounted thereon elevating chains 29 and are sodisposed at their inner sides as to gripori clamp the tops of the beetstherebetween sufHcientIy to hold the beets and elevate them to thetopping mechanism, to be later described. The sprockets27 are of such.sizeas to exanother on certain sides of the chain \Z 5'. feet the actiondescribed.

The centrally arranged sprockets 27 on the bars 6 and 7 are splined onsubstantially upright shafts 30 that are mounted in the bars 6 and 7.These shafts 30 extend downwardly below, the under faces of the bars 6and 7 and are slidable with relation there? to, the upper end of eachshaft being arranged so as to prevent its pulling out of the. bars.Keyed onjthe lower end of the shaft 30 is a bevel gear 3lthat mesheswith the bevel gear; 32 which is spline'd on a' horizontal shaft 33. Thehorizontal" shaft 33 is arranged in supe'fposed parallel relation to theforward axle2 of the device and is provided at its outer end with apinion 34 keyed thereon and which meshes'with a largerge'ar 35 mountedontheaxle 2. The

shaft 33 is journaled; in suitable bearing or platfornf 1, and is alsosupported by means of an angular arm 37 that on its lower end isoperatively connected with a cylindrical extension'38 which is formedin-' tegral with the gear 32'; The projection 38 is provided with a keygroove to receive the keys on-the shafts so that the gear 32 is brackets36. that are'secured to the frame splined and is slidable horizontallyvon'the shaft. The upper end of'the arm'37 is provided with a pin andslot connection designatedjig asan entirety with the outer side faces ofthe bars 6' and 7. v The pin. and slot connection 39 permits thevertical 'or approximately vertical adjustment ofathe bars 6"and 7, Thelateral adjustment of the bars 6 and 7 will not interferewith theoperating mechanism for the elevator chains :29 inasmutt as the gear321s slidable upon its shaft and is connectedby the 37 with the bars 6and 7. Thus the gear 32 is caused to-slide in accordancewith-themovement of the gear 31 and held in meshingrelation at alltimes. Brackets 121 described in con- .nection with the sockets 12 forthe adjusting rods 8 slidably secure the socket and adjusting rod. Itwillthus be seen that the adjusting rods 8 are permitted "lateraladjust:

is thus notinterfered with. I, clutch collar {l0 is sp'lined 'onl 'thefront axle 2 and arranged to cooperate with a clutch collar 41 that ismounted on; the shaft 2'fan'd' secured tdth' large gear 35. ;It will bereadily. seen that when the'gears and clutch members 40'and41are notengaged the mechanism for elevating the beets will be in inoperativeposition. To cause. the clutch members 40 and 41 to coiiperate I promentand the lateral adjustment of the bars vide the operating levers 42 forthe clutch memberslO that are provided with forked lower ends fittingwithingrooves insuch clutch members. The. operating levers 42 may besuitably connected with the frame and approximatelyarranged adjacent to.the drivers seat so. that the driver by grasping one of the levers 42may cause the clutch ping knife 43 that has a number of angu-- larlydisposed blades extending radially from the center of the knife and isfixed upon the lower end portion of the vertical shaft 44. The shaft 44is 'rotatably journaled at its outer end to a slidebar 45 that isarranged transversely of and slidably secured to the bars 6 and 7 at itsend. The end portions of the bar 45 are slotted, as at 46, and receiveloosely, fastening means to permit sliding of the bar 45. A gear 47 iskeyed upon the lower end cf the shaft 44 and meshes with the gear 48that is keyed upon the lower end of the shaft 49 on which a certainsprocket 27 is mounted. In this connection it will be noted that theshaft sprocket is arranged between the center sprocket and uppersprocket and adjacent to the topping knife 43.. The rotation of theknife 43 is brought about through the me dium of the shaft 49 and gears48 and 47 The operation of my device. may be briefly described asfollows: Assuming that the device is ready to be drawn along a row ofbeets, the operator upon manipulation of the rod 42, causes the clutchmembers 40 and had. The digging fingers 20 are arranged I provide at theupper end of each bar a slidable member 50 that is slidable within arecess in which the upper sprocket is mount ed. The member 50 isconnected with the sprocket andan adjusting screw 51 that is turned inthe outer end of the bar and swiveled at its inner end to the member 50.By operating the adjusting screw the slack of the chain may beregulated. It willbe noted that when it is desired to lift the diggingfingers 20 and cooperating parts in spaced relation to the ground thehandles 10 are grasped and the adjusting rod 8 rotated. Upon therotation of the adjusting rod 8 the bars 6 and 7 will be moved on thebar 14 upwardly so that the lower ends thereof are spaced from theground and the device may be readily drawn across the field when notoperating. p

3 In practice, I have found that the form of my. invention, illustratedin the drawings and referred to-in the above description, as

the preferred embodiment, is the most efii cient and practical; yetrealizing that the conditions concurrent with the adoption of my devicewill necessarily vary, I desire to at the desired position and loosenthe earth along opposite sides of the beets as the bar-1 vester is drawnalong the row. The'extend v ed fingers 19 serve to clear the space aboutthe beets of trash and other foreign matter between the lower ends ofthe bars 6 and 7 and will be engaged and clamped by the chains 29. .Thechains 29 and lowermost sprocket 27 are so arranged that the beets or.tops thereof will be readily grasped at points above where the topsare'joined to the beets. The spacing-of the chains 29 relative to eachother is regulated by the adjustment permitted the bars 6 and 7. It willbe readily seen that this chain is adjustable drops into a receptacle 16mounted on the platform 1 that is disposed immediately beneath thetopping knife. The top is carried up toward the end of the bars anddrops rearwardly of the device upon the emphasize the fact that variousminor changes in details of 'construction, proportion and arrangement ofparts may be resorted to, when required, without sacrificing any of theadvantages of my invention, as. set forth.

Having thus described the invention what is. claimed as new, is: I

1. In a beetharvester a wheel supported jframe, means to clamp the topsof beets,

withdraw the'beets from the ground and elevate them to the topping meanswhereby the tops are severed, said last named means consisting of spacedparallel upwardly and rearwardly inclined bars mounted on the frame withtheir lower ends disposed to engage the ground, sprockets in the bars,chains on the sprockets arranged in spaced relation to each other alongopposed sides to clamp the tops of beets and remove the beets from theground and elevate the beets to the topping mechanism, means arrangedintermediate the ends of the bars to adjust 65 ground. To.adjust thetension of the chain the bars relative to one another in a lateralplane, and means to move the'lower end of the bars away from the groundarranged in connection with the frame and bars at a point forwardlyofthe means for adjusting the bars laterally, said means for adjustingthe bars laterally acting as a pivot for the bars upon verticaladjustment thereof, and said means for adjusting the bars verticallylpeing slidable laterally with relation to the rame.

2. In a beet harvester a wheel supported frame, topping means to'severthe tops of means whereby the tops are severed from means slidablysecured to the frame to secure the adjusting rods, and means to adjustthe bars laterally with relation to one another.

3. In a beet harvester a wheel supported frame, topping means to severthe tops of beets, means'to'withdraw the beets from the 5 ground andelevate them to the topping means whereby the tops are severed from thebeets, said last named means including bars arranged in spaced relationto one another and having chains rotatably mounted zothereon to grip thetops of beets therebetween, means to adjust the bars in a vertical planecomprising screwthreaded rods clamped'tothe bars intermediate the endsthereof, handles on the. screwthreaded rods,

angularly disposed sockets and means secured-to the frame to rotatably.secure the adjusting rods in the sockets.

I 4. In a beet harvester-a Wheel supported frame, means to top thebeets, means to clamp the tops of the beets and elevate them to thetopping'ineans consisting of bars arranged inspaced parallel relation toone another and upon the frame, sprockets mounted within the ba'rs,chains mounted on -the sprockets and. arranged tov clamp the tops of thebeets, means to rotate the same, a

bar adjustable transversely of the first] named bars, a depending shaftrotatahly ournaled in the last named bar, and sup- 40 portingthe toppingmeans, a gear. on the lower end of said shaft, and a gear opera-.tively'connected'with one of the sprockets 7 connected with said lastnamed gear, and

means to adjustithe bars to and from one another in a lateral plane.

5. In a beet harvester lncluding a wheel supported frame having means totop the beets, means to grasp the tops of the beets and elevate them 'tothe topping means consisting of bars arranged in spaced parallelrelation to one another and upon the frame, sprockets mounted within thebars, chains mounted onthe sprockets and-arranged to clamp the tops ofthe beets, means to rotate the chains, a bar adjustable transversely ofthe first named bars, a depending shaftrotatakly mounted in the lastnamed bar, and supporting the topping means, a'gear on the lower end ofsaid shaft, and a gear oppositely connected with one of the sprocketsconnected with said last named gear, and

means to adjust the bars to and from. one another in a lateral plane.

6. A beet harvester including a wheel supported frame, topping means,means to'grasp the tops'of beets, withdraw them from the groundandelevate them to the topping means consisting of spaced barsand'meansto clamp and elevate the beets supported upon the bars, andmeans to operate said last named means, comprising a plurality of gearsoperatively connected with said means and one of the Wheels of theframe, means".-

slidably connecting certain of the gears with the. bars whereby thegears are moved rela tive to the movement of the bars and retained inmeshing relation to one another, means to adjust the bars late sallytoand from one another, and means t3 adjustthe bars vertically. I, I

. In testimony whereof I a'ffix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

CHARLES 'O. I. NILSSQN. Witnesses:

v Vrc'ron N. LAwsoN, GUstrAr Lawson.

